finally, we must be mindful of the environment in which we pursue all these missions. first we operate in a time of severe budget constraints. as secretary of the department of homeland security, i therefore believe i am obligated to identify and eliminate inefficiencies, waste and unnecessary duplications of resources across dhs' large and decentralized beurocracy while pursuing important missions such as the recap tallization of the aging coast guard fleet. second, i am mindful of the surveys that reflect that morale is low within various components of dhs. i intend to remind our workforce of the importance of their homeland security mission and that the department's greatest asset in the pursuit of these missions is our people. i will be a champion for the men and women of dhs, and i will advocate on their behalf. i look forward to working with this committee. the chairman is correct that i am actively working to full the vacancies in senior management positions. i do that on a daily basis. i look forward to a shared vision and a partnership with congress on our imp